From start to finish

How many of you dudes are actually finishing off tracks? I think today I already made a start on about 3-4 new tracks. This could be good to get ideas down fast but the reality is a lot of these tracks will probably be forgotten about as I move onto the next. So, how important is it to commit to a single track before moving on?

Not important, IMO. If you're not feeling a track, don't try to force yourself to finish it. You'll probably end up with something pretty unsatisfying.

There's always a chance that later you'll have an idea which finally brings the track along. You might finish it, or maybe you might use some element of the original song in a new one.

^
+1

i have hundreds of starts, half as many 50%ers, and a handful of 90% completed tracks

wide and shallow. keep a lot of pots bubblin at the same time, and eventually you'll find 2 songs that blend perfectly and you can do a switchup that makes everyone say aww sh!t. it can be depressing, though.

i usually start and finish a beat in 1 sitting (30-60 minutes after sample is chopped up.. usually less)

but i make a certain kind of beats, they're not very complex, etc... i like making a lot in short amounts of time.. im not saying that its right for everyone but i rarely open up a beat to mess with it again after the initial session unless im editing it for an MC or arranging it differently, mixing it, etc...

i honestly havent finished a beat the way i want since this past summer

i mean i can come back to them anytime, but like when i have my itunes on shuffle and it plays some random half-ass beat i started like in august of last year, it will get me thinking about finishing it.

i think my problem is i try WAY to hard to get the beat sounding JUST right, and when i cant particularly achieve the sound i want, i get pissed and start something new all over, and then shit just keeps repeating over and over...

I find that the first time I work on a beat - things move along - it is very hard to go back to something and get back in the zone again - I reckon you just keep on working on the one beat for as long as you can in one go, come back a couple of days later and see if you want to keep going - But most progress always happens in the first session! Get as far down the road as you can in the first session...others may disagree!

yep, I have a hundred half finished tracks but dont sweat it. I try to save by genre, so that if I feel like hiphop or house, I got stuff there I can load and listen to, then play with or just erase and start again with that kit or groove.
Yeah its funny what Nym said as a pile of half finished stuff is daunting.
Sometimes I knock out something quick, but when I am doing something bigger, like 8 minutes of break or whatever, then its not doable in 4 to 5 hours. I make a good beat or bass line, know what I want to achieve and think, damn thats another few days of work to do there now. Only because I am programming synths and trying to do progressive arrangements. I think more time for me to get more proficient, say another year, I mean I see my work getting quicker all the time but I am doing more complicated stuff. So yeah I do stuff then just leave it and do something better. Its all a learning process so even a half finished beat no one hears has its merits as it is a outcome of your work and makes you better through practice.
So I have two kinds of half finished work - crap, and stuff that needs more work.

astral_Signal wrote:So, how important is it to commit to a single track before moving on?

Just my 2 cents now:

I think your question is a real serious one, as you describe a common illness (yep) of most beatmakers around (including me).

For me finishing single tracks is essential and shouldnt be played down. It's what separates the hobby-beatmaker from the producer. Now quickly ask yourself how you spend your (maybe precious) time making music.

I had much fun doing beats the last 2 years, definitely did some dope stuff, had great ideas and ofcourse learned one or two things. But when i evaluate the actual outcome (perhaps a handful of finished beats and one remix or so) i could suffer a lil depression. I spent 90% of the time digging (often baked) for samples then quickly arranged some sequences just to get that fast buzz most samplebased producers should know. That indeed is the greatest part of our (beautiful) craft. But if you want to take it further you just can't stop here. All the dudes we listen to who actually produce records on a regular basis are lightyears ahead as they KNOW how to arrange and finish tracks.

That for example means coming up with fresh intros, outros, breakdowns, c-sections, hooks, chorus etc - no matter how minimal your music may be. Basically everything which keeps the song/beat interesting for more than 60 seconds.

The bad thing is the process mentioned above is (imo) the hardest thing to do, as you have to become a lil technical, detailed and most of all patient. You have to make decisions about what to keep and what to drop (remember, most of the times less is more). Assuming you're doing hip hop you might think 'aaah dude is talking about some progressive arranging sh!t i'm definitely not into' but thats not the case. I even think finishing simple beats and arranging them minimally is the toughest job.

The good thing is that all that stuff can be learned (im at the beginning of that process). For example you could just analyse some of your favourite songs and try to use that arrangement on some of your unfinished beat-ideas. Moreover there are plenty of arranging-tutorials online which could help you a lot (check tweakheadz for example http://tweakheadz.com/recipes.html). Take part in those beatbattles hosted here. Do your music project based (like 3,4 song EP's or something). Use to-do lists. Corporate with other artists etc... Just keep in mind that time can move pretty fast starting hundreds of (great) ideas without releasing, mixing, mastering one single song. I dont want to philosophize too much.. In the end this post should just encourage young beatmakers to invest time into those 80% of work that usually follow the initial phase (banging pads with a big grin) of making records. The necessary decisions of what to keep and what to drop will teach you a lot and finally shape your unique style/sound as a producer.

Peace

Great post ^